Long-tailed Skipper vs Black Aphodius

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Long-tailed Skipper Black Aphodius
Scientific Name Urbanus proteus Aphodius fimetarius
Order Lepidoptera Coleoptera
Family Hesperiidae Scarabaeidae
Size 43-55 mm wingspan 5-8 mm
Habitat Farmland Farmland
Diet Omnivores Dung Feeders
Regions Southern United States through Central and South America Europe, North America, Asia
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Long-tailed Skipper

A striking skipper with iridescent blue-green body and wing bases and long tail-like projections on the hindwings. It is a strong flier and occasional migrant.

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Did You Know?

Known as the bean leaf roller because the caterpillar folds bean leaves into tubular shelters.

Black Aphodius

A small dweller dung beetle with a black head and pronotum and reddish-brown elytra. It lives directly within dung pats rather than tunneling or rolling. One of the most common and widespread dung beetles in the Northern Hemisphere.

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Did You Know?

Unlike roller and tunneler species, dwellers complete their entire life cycle within the dung pat itself.